e-mail: keithconning@aol.com.
I have been a fan, athlete, coach, official, prep editor, author, blogger, and photographer since 1953.
I have announced the NCAA West, the Pac-12, the Stanford Invitational, the Brutus Hamilton Invitational, the Mt. SAC Relays, the North Coast Section, the Sac-Joaquin Section, and the California State High School Meet.
I have attended five Olympic Games and four World Championships.
I am a U.S. Correspondent for Track and Field News.

Friday, March 17, 2017

USC Opens 2017 Outdoor T&F Season By Hosting Trojan InvitationalFans get first chance to see USC's highly-ranked track and field team

March 16, 2017Complete Weekly ReleaseMeet ScheduleHeat Sheets
The USC men's and women's track and field teams will host the Trojan Invitational on March 17 and 18 at Loker Stadium. Among the teams competing at the Trojan Invitational will be BYU, CS Fullerton, Long Beach State, Portland State, Washington and Washington State. Also as is tradition, there will be Los Angeles city high school relay championships held on Saturday. TROJAN INVITATIONAL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS - The Trojan Invitational will begin on March 17 with the hammer throw and discus throw competitions being held at Long Beach State beginning at 1 p.m.. Then the action switches to Loker Stadium that night at 5 p.m. for a distance carnival featuring the 3000m steeplechase and 3000m races. The main portion of the meet will be on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Loker Stadium. NCAA INDOORS RECAP - The USC women's team placed fourth with 25 points and the men's team placed 21st with 11 points at the 2017 NCAA Indoor T&F Championships held in College Station, Texas from March 10-11. The women's team closed out the meet by winning the 4x400m relay with a collegiate-record time of 3:27.03. The Trojan record-setting relay was comprised of Cameron Pettigrew, Amalie Iuel, Deanna Hill and Kendall Ellis. Trojan women earning All-America honors were: Anna Cockrell (4th-60m Hurdles), Kendall Ellis (2nd-400m, 1st-4x400m), Deanna Hill (3rd-200m, 1st-4x400m), Amalie Iuel (1st-4x400m), Brittany Mann (3rd-Shot Put), Cameron Pettigrew (1st-4x400m). USC men earning All-America honors were: Randall Cunningham (4th-High Jump) and Just'N Thymes (3rd-200m). Ellis in the 400m, Hill in the 200m and Mann in the shot put broke their own USC records in their respective events. WOMEN WIN MPSF INDOOR TITLE - USC's women's team won the team title and the men's team took second on the strength of four individual titles during the final day of action at the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Indoor Track & Field Championships held at Dempsey Indoor in Seattle, Wash. from Feb. 24-25. Cameron Pettigrew won the women's 400m, the women's 4x400m relay won and tied the meet and track record and Brittany Mann set the USC shot put record in taking second to help lead USC to 125 points and a 20-point win in the team competition. Winning titles for the men's team were Randall Cunningham with a meet record in the high jump, Dominic Smallwood in the triple jump, Robert Ford in the 800m and Just'N Thymes in the 60m dash to lead them to 83 points and a second-place finish. USC's women's team won its third MPSF title in four seasons. USC'S RETURNING ALL-AMERICANS - USC has six 2016 first-team All-Americans returning including Destinee Brown (2nd in the 4x400m), Randall Cunningham (NCAA champion in the HJ), Kendall Ellis (8th in 4x400m), Deanna Hill (6th in 100m, 7th in 200m, 2nd in 4x100m and 8th in 4x400m), Amalie Iuel (8th in 4x400m), Ricky Morgan Jr. (7th in the 400m). In addition, 2015 NCAA All-Americans Dior Hall (100m hurdles), Just'N Thymes (4x100m) and Ky Westbrook (100m, 4x100m) return from missing last season due to injuries. WHO'S NEW ON THE 2017 TROJANS - There are 16 new women's athletes on this season's outdoor roster: Chloe Berry (distances), Anna Cockrell (hurdles), Kyra Constantine (sprints), Courtney Corrine (jumps), Zaria Francis (sprints), Kennedy Gillian (sprints), Vivian Grimes (distances), Alexa Harmon-Thomas (multis), Lorea Ibarzabal (distances), Brittany Mann (throws), Erin McAndrews (pole vault), Mecca McGlaston (hurdles), Colette Putnam (throws), Kayla Richardson (sprints), Kyla Richardson (sprints), Kamryn Weber (distances). The men's team features nine new active athletes on the roster: Alexander Barnum (sprints), Raynard Beckham (sprints), T.J. Brock (sprints), Michael Gonzalez (jumps), Jason Kim (throws), Matthew Myrtue (distances), Michael Norman (sprints), Christian Sourapas (sprints), Joshua Zavala (distances). NEXT MEET: JIM KLEIN COMBINED EVENTS & AZTEC INVITATIONAL - USC will next compete at the Jim Klein Combined Events in Santa Barbara, Calif. on March 23-24 and at the Aztec Invitational in San Diego, Calif. on March 24-25.